Mexico Books

This book is line upon line fact upon fact just well researched and documented history, it is not a bunch of opinion nor speculation. If you know Dr. Hordes like I do you know that this is the kind of man and quality of work to be expected from him, I say this as a descendant of the crypto-Jews. Sincerly Perry Pena

This new book by Dr. Hordes is an excellent introduction to an area of study that has been given only opinionated overviews up to this point. Whether one agrees or disagrees with Horde's thesis, that fact is Sephardic Jewish culture is a crucial element of the overall Hispanic experience, as much as the Moorish, Roman, and Visigothic contributions. To deny this is to live in darkness. As Spain's historiography is finally opening and accepting of its Jewish past, so too should Hispanic Americans open up and accept that past. It is reality.

While a well written book, I also enjoyed immensely the copious footnotes Horde's provides, to give an indication of the enormous amount of work and research that went into this book. Archives throughout Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Mexico, and New Mexico were searched for scattered references and indications of ANY possible behavior that could point the way to any latent Crypto-Jewish practices or cultural rememberances. Inquisition documents, incredible sources of social and cultural history, were used in an amazing way to gain insight into the world of these Hispanic peoples living in times more complex than we may care to admit.

Ultimately, one must make up their own mind regarding the Crypto-Jews of New Mexico. But if one is responsible in their intellect, they will make an informed decision, one that will require the reading of this book. Whether one's name is Encinias, Truxillo, Martinez, or Chavez, it cannot be denied: you have a Sephardic Jewish past. It comes through not only our bloodlines in Iberia, co-mingling with the native blood of the Americas, but also through our rich Catholic cultural heritage, which itself sprang out of the Jewish Semitic Middle East.

Anyone interested in the diverse and fascinating experience that is the Hispanic experience in the Americas, and in New Mexico in particular, needs to read this book now!

Thesis: Many of the Spanish settlers of New Mexico were either secretely practising Jews or recent converts. Through the ensuing centuries, some kept up tradition and practice of their Hebrew faith, in all or part.

I heard this hypothesis when I first moved to the Land of Enchantment in 1979. Most locals took it as likely. However, "studies" on the subject were mainly collections of anecdotes of familes that did not eat pork or that played with draedels in December but didn't know why.

Stanley Hordes has done scholarship a real service with his meticulous, well-documented, and systematic research, as presented in To The End of the Earth. Rather than rushing into anecdotes, he first gives a broad backdrop of the history of Judaism in Iberia and the political and religious upheavals there in the 13th through 16th centuries.

Having set the stage, Hordes then follows families of "new Christians" to Mexico. Through an examination of correspondence, records of the Holy Office (Inquisition) and other documents, he traces the likely practice of crypto-Judaism in Old Mexico.

Only then does he set forth north of the Rio Bravo to see the fate of some likely Jewish or formerly Jewish families, trace their practices, and scour for physical evidence among a group that was reticent to leave records of what was long an illegal practice.

Hordes wraps up nicely with not only the family stories but with DNA and blood protein studies. He falls short in actually finding evidence such as hidden synagogues or secret Torahs, but he certainly paints a compelling picture that many of the Hispano settlers of New Mexico were, at the very least, reluctant conversos.

This is an engrossing and well-referenced work for any serious scholar. While not light reading, it is also not too challenging for a non-anthropologist.

By all means, if the thesis is of interest to you, you should order this book.

A couple of years ago I went to a lecture that Dr. Stanley Hordes presented to the New Mexico Genealogy Society. He discussed his then upcoming book about crypto-Jews in New Mexico titled "To the End of the Earth." What intrigued me about Dr. Hordes lecture was that he found proof that the colony of Nuevo Leon, Nuevo Espana ( present day Mexico) probably was populated with crypto-Jews. This same colony en masse tried to illegally colonize New Mexico in 1591, and a few of these people were also part of the official New Mexico colony in 1598. Dr. Hordes' makes a very good argument that there were crypto-Jews in New Mexico during the first years of colonization and that their descendants continued practicing Judaism up until the present day.

A crypto-Jew is a person who converted or whose ancestors converted to Christianity yet still secretly practices Judaism. As with many other Christian countries, Jews were persecuted in Spain during the Middle Ages. In 1390 many Jews converted to Christianity after an especially devastating pogrom. In 1492, after King Fernando and Queen Isabel conquered the last vestige of Muslim Spain in Granada, the Christian monarchs officially expelled the Jews from Spain. All who stayed in Spain were required to convert to Catholicism. Many went to Portugal where they too were forced to convert.

The Spanish Inquisition persecuted many of these New Christians as apostates and heretics. Many were accused of going back to their old religion. In order to avoid prosecution many New Christians went to the New World. Dr. Hordes shows how one such colony from Portugal under the leadership of Luis de Carvajal y de la Cueva were almost definitely New Christians, and most likely crypto-Jews.

Carvajal was given permission by the King Philip II of Spain to found a colony in Nuevo Leon. The king gave specific instructions to officials not to question the ethnicity of the people in this colony. Dr. Hordes contends that these people were probably New Christians since at the time New Christians prohibited from going to the New World. The king's instructions would have made it easier for them to cross over to Mexico. As further proof Hordes notes that Carvajal's son was later prosecuted by the Inquisition. During the younger Carvajal's arrest Gaspar Castano de Sosa lead the entire colony to New Mexico. Hordes contends that he probably did this in order to escape being prosecuted himself as a judaizer. However Castano de Sosa was arrested anyway for trying to illegally colonize New Mexico.

Hordes uses church and government records to demonstrate the possibility that New Christians practiced Judaism throughout New Mexico history. His argument is strongest with the early years of the colony when Inquisition records documented investigations into possible judaizers. He also uses genealogy to show how certain assumed crypto-Jewish families intermarried within culture. However, his arguments are weaker when it comes to the present day. Although there is some proof that certain present day Hispano New Mexican families continue the practice of crypto-Judaism, there are questions as to whether certain evidence truly demonstrates this practice. Hordes does not completely dispel these questions, although he comes closer than others who have tried to prove this theory.

Dr. Hordes' book is well researched and was a fascinating read. Any person interested in Hispanic New Mexican history and genealogy should read this book. One then can make up his or her mind whether Dr. Hordes proves that crypto-Judaism indeed was practiced throughout New Mexico's history.

More than 700 footnotes add up to an extraordinary story well worth the telling: quite a few "manitos" of Northern New Mexico were probably crypto-Jews who preserved parts of their own culture through centuries of isolation. So we discover that Hispanos and Hebrews are both part of Chicano history in the American Southwest.

Since these individuals covered their tracks well and most are long dead, the trail was cold and neglected. However, Dr. Hordes did not take the easy, glamorous and lucrative route to selling their extraordinary history. Instead, he and his colleagues spent years and years pouring over thousands of documents. As one who has looked at a little of this "paleography," let me testify that a person can go blind staring at that terrible, ancient, blotched and blotted handwriting. I appreciate such careful scholarship; it lays out all possible evidence without overreaching.

Thanks to this book, a vast number of dots have been laid out on the map of New Mexican history. While each by itself is not conclusive, when I connect the dots I see the fascinating faces of religious dissidents who courageously preserved their own beliefs in the face of enormous social pressure. They went "To the Ends of the Earth" to preserve their integrity. I find their story inspiring.

There is so much to say that I will have to force myself to be brief.

I tend to speed read my way through books but Crossroads 1969 demanded my time and I was glad to give it. This is the type of book that should be read more widely and maybe, through more exposure for the author in Amazon Shorts, it will be. Reading it reminded me that there are probably more John Cassells out there who, with one simple break, could be acknowledged as some of the great writers of our time.

John Cassell describes Crossroads as 'based on a true story' and his decriptions of people and events are so real, so 'in the moment', that he most certainly must have experienced them first hand. That said, it is one thing to experience a person or event and quite another to put it down on paper in a manner that gives the reader a sense of having watched it happen. That is Mr. Cassell's true gift. The people who populate the pages of Crossroads, from the drunk singing his own interpretation of "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling", to the centred and sensible Marcie, to the the bribable Spanish customs official, are so well described that I felt like I had just watched a movie instead of reading a book.

I am grateful to Amazon Shorts for providing a forum for my short stories but I am equally grateful that being there allowed me to make the acquaintance of John and other fine writers. Without the Shorts program, Crossroads 1969 would never have found me and I would have missed something truly worth the reading.

Brother John, I kid you not when I say that this is a wonderful book. Well done and five stars!

>> I'd already begun the battle to secure a berth for myself in a seminary at Berkeley, having submitted the necessary applications and labored over the essay which was supposed to explain in detail why I wanted to become an Anglican priest. All my friends and family had their own ideas on the subject, ranging from the worst reasons to the best. Mine, I am afraid, would have probably surprised them all and could never have been included in the essay. In truth, I was looking for a dream world to inhabit, a small country parish in the west of England where I could write scholarly theological works, drink scotch, and go prematurely senile minding a turnip garden. <<

For me, there's no substitute for reading a passage of the author's own words, to get a sense of whether you'd want to read a book. For that reason, I often quote a passage from the book I'm reviewing, isolating a segment which exposes some of the most compelling or life-filled word usage. One of the many possible prime quotes of John W. Cassell's syntax in CROSSROADS: 1969, the above passage gives a feel for this author's rich, clear voice. That quote can be found in both CR: 69 and SOLDIER OF AQUARIUS.

When I read that passage, I was already pulling for this warm, intelligent, spirited young man to succeed in living in that dream world, even though I feared that reality of pure scholarly theology might not even exist within the darkened political arenas of religious sanctuaries, except in a few very isolated, monkish cases. I wanted that world to exist, if only for John Cassell to be able to cloister himself into that dreamed type of sacred luxury of religious ecstasy and intrigue.

But, as the novel's plot developed and I saw how John was blocked from entry into that dream world, it was too clear that another world and path awaited this young man's footprints. It didn't take long before the author Cassell's words immersed the reader into subcultures of different paths and possibilities, each disallowed or road-forked-way for various reasons. Each time I fully shared John's disappointments, as I admired his ways of moving ever onward into whatever experiences he lived, through nightmares and joys, catastrophes and raptures, empty spaces and intrigues.

One thing John's life and his books do not provide is any whiff or hint of boredom. Enthrallment is in there, for keeps!

In this case, the enthrallment was not only through a philosophical journey with fascinating directional changes (as intriguing as those in the Tin Man's Quantum Leap out of the Kansas of his heroine's childhood); it's the most unusual travelogue you'll ever read on a USA citizen touring Europe and North Africa in more intimate ways than possible through friends who "live there"... and with less (almost equal) means than it would take to buy a Kindle Reader. Kindle: Amazon's New Wireless Reading Device (John's novels are available through Kindle, too.)

I recommend taking the journeys through Cassell's novels, either in physical book form, and/or through Kindle. Eventually, I'll own both/all forms of this pioneering author's works now forming their place within The Classic Literature of the Next Age.

CROSSROADS: 1969 may be my favorite of JWC's novels listed below, though now that SOLDIER OF AQUARIUS: 1969-1970 is out, that would be my favorite of those two, because that is where this saga of a series is seeded, and because my blurb is included in the opening quotes from, "What other writers are saying about John W. Cassell."

There are a few logical ways to approach a step into reading the sequential counterculture novels of John W. Cassell:

-- One is to begin with CROSSROADS: 1969 (published 2005) and follow that with AN AQUARIAN TRAGEDY: 1970 (published 2006 under pseudonym James Mundell). An Aquarian Tragedy

-- Another is to begin with SOLDIER OF AQUARIUS (published November, 2007) Soldier of Aquarius: 1969-1970 SoA is a compilation of the two above novels; the two component novels were formatted for each other in their original united state.

After reading the pair of books (CR & AAT) or the original manuscript which had both of those novels in one (SoA), the road fork would offer:

-- ODYSSEY: 1970 Odyssey: 1970

That novel gives a brief summary of CR, then covers the plot of AAT with a few chapters added to extend the protagonist's experiences through the whole year of '70, the effect of which broadens the view (through the expanded time structure and interjected research of major, news-breaking events) of what Cassell calls the Counterculture movement, with its multi-angle-motivations (realistically exposing dark and bright). Whereas CR & AAT focus on an individual's personal perspective of how he reacted to and worked within and through those timeframes; ODYSSEY presents a broader cultural perspective, looking outward into the world as well as inward into the psychological, sociological impositions and enhancements of the same individual.

The author's suggestion is to read CR:69 + Odyssey:1970... or S of A.

Then, the sequence would be as follows:

-- HELL'S QUEST: 1971 Hell's Quest: 1971

This novel continues from the base of either of the above alternatives, through the same protagonist, based on the author himself. In HQ, however, the author adds extensive (and fascinating) fictionalized elements to some of his biographical base, whereas the other novels listed above are based strongly on autobiographical realities.

-- DEVILLIER'S COUNTRY BLUES: 1972 DeVilliers County Blues: 1972

This novel continues where HQ leaves off, including the addition of fictionalized elements into a biographical basis, with the balance of fiction continuing to increase.

-- UNCERTAIN PARADISE: 1973: Part 1 (Release scheduled for late December, 2007)

This novel continues where DCB leaves off, with the balance of fiction again increasing. This novel is a satisfying read in itself, even if Part 2 does not materialize. However, you will be wanting more of JWC's novels, no matter what books you read first.

Take time to visit our discussion forum in the Amazon Shorts category, "A toast to John Cassell's novel, "HELL'S QUEST: 1971, an ongoing commentary."

That forum title has evolved well beyond a seminar on writing within a successful story format, for short pieces, novels, or sequencing sagas; yet in its evolution that forum has remained carefully focused on highly informative concepts related to writing while using Cassell's works as the baseline for comment. If you're at all interested in an X-ray view of "authorship-in-progress" or completion of Nobel Prize worthy literature, you'll feel satisfied with what you'll find there. Maybe the best part is that many of those contributing to that forum are still alive and writing... though a few quickened characters, ghosts, and poltergeists did and do apply!

From your friendly, local (on Amazon) parapsychologist,
Linda G. Shelnutt
Morning Comes: the Pre Dawn Blues - Part 1

Review of John W. Cassell's "Crossroads: 1969" (Once, We Were Young) - By Jack Engelhard

John W. Cassell traveled to Europe in search of America and to understand this it helps to be a Child of the 60s -though in a sense we are all Children of the 60s since the art, the music, the literature and even the politics of that era, all of it is still very much alive. In "Crossroads: 1969," Cassell' uses a bio-novel technique to recover the past - the second half the 1960s and into the 1970s - and the result is a masterful rendering of an era.

In trying to find America, through the backroads and the highways of Europe, Cassell was obviously trying to find himself as well, and this no one ever achieves, something nearing perfection, but it's the pursuit itself that makes for an exhilarating adventure; in this case, Cassell's adventure, wherein he introduces us to new landscapes and new people, and we never know, until we turn the page, who might be waiting for him around the next corner.

Cassell writes it straight and his most noticeable skill is in his ability to take us with him wherever he goes. We're with him when a friend turns into an enemy and we're with him when strangers turn into friends and we're with him when at any moment he could be arrested by the French police or the Spanish police - or the dreaded ESTABLISHMENT.

We understand his shyness toward women at a time when women were getting bolder. This took some of us off stride.

This is all about being young and the 1960s were about many things, but mostly about being young. America, during that period, was going through the symptoms of birthing, or rather, renewal. America was trying to figure out exactly what kind of nation it wanted to be. Therefore, there was that, the Establishment, and then there was the counterculture.

Like so many of us, Cassell found himself caught in the middle. Lucky for us that he turned to writing to share the excitement of a nation and a man still unfinished.

The adventure continues.

Today, the lines are much more clear-cut. You're left or you're right. Back then, we were still trying to make up our minds.

The 1960s were the defining decade of a generation. But which America was the correct one for us?

Cassell doesn't lecture or pontificate. He only observes and lets us, his readers, arrive at the conclusions. That's what we call good writing, and as so often happens in this bio-novel - great writing. There are so many nuggets to choose from here, but Cassell pretty much puts his finger on what the 1960s were all about when he writes: "The future was certainly ours - there was nothing but time. Yet there was not a moment to lose."

What a beautiful snapshot! Yes, we knew that at this moment the decade belonged to us, we were all in revolt, and yet we recognized that at any moment it could all be over. Vietnam was happening, after all, and the cities were burning, and everybody, it seemed, had issues, so we knew that it could not last. How long could we continue to protest when at some point we'd actually have to raise a family and earn a living? We'd have to cut our hair and most likely join a corporation - the Establishment.

One day we would have to grow up.

Cassell did grow up and what an incredible bio he developed over the years, much too long and storied to repeat here, except to note that out of all that, he enlisted in the United States Air Force, served as a New Mexico State Trooper, and also served as a district attorney - but that only touches on his many achievements.

His greatest achievement, though, as far as this reviewer is concerned, is in reminding us that once upon a time we were young. Once upon a time everything was possible.

Maybe such a time will come round again.

Bravo, John W. Cassell!

Jack Engelhard's latest novel, "The Bathsheba Deadline," is now available in paperback. Engelhard wrote the international bestselling novel "Indecent Proposal."

John W. Cassell is an author of extraordinary talent. His descriptive style, wit and smooth prose take you along on his journey, which is not only interesting, but captures the imagination and takes one to boundless territories.

If you never read any of John W. Cassell's work, you have missed more than just a little. You have missed adventure, excitement, romance, and wonderful trips, journeys, where you feel, almost believe, you are there with him sharing his sometimes wild, sometimes hair-raising, and often just plain fun adventures. Definitely five stars for this very, very talented writer.

John's story begins in his teens, and probably long before, where he is searching for something better than what he is accustomed. Disillusioned and with a certain sense of emptiness, he decides to embark upon that quest. He doesn't want to consider graduate school, as is strongly suggested. Instead, he wants to travel to Europe and soon has a passport. However, John and his friend Chris work for several months, while John is saving up money for his journey.

Following months of hard labor, John finally finds himself on his mother's porch, saying goodbye to his mother and brother, Barry. Mixed with the excitement of what may lie ahead, is fear and apprehension. Still, this is something he has to do.

In England, John is stunned when he learns that his acceptance into King's College, London was a mistake. It had been believed that it was his brother Barry who had applied. Once more, John feels the pain of humiliation from his childhhod that he'd fought against for years to overcome.

John enjoys the wonderful meals of England, but when he travels to France, he finds the bread really good and the coffee very bitter. And he finds he has difficulty chewing the delicious bread and believes it is a molar problem, but later comes to realize it is much more serious.

John makes many friends, some strange, some mysterious and some really close, male and female alike. He travels a good deal by bicycle, often taking daring chances, entering tunnels where he could find himself approaching head-on with a car or truck. Picking apples from orchards in France and nearly getting killed, along with his French friend, who is something of an enigma, but he doesn't remain that way for long. John soon gets one of the biggest surprises of his life.

In Spain, John finds the people a little warmer and friendlier than some he has encountered on his trek, and his knowledge of Spanish is a definite plus, not only for himself, but for friends he makes along the way. However, he realizes that he must return home, one of the main reasons being his health.

At one point, he ends up getting arrested due to a misunderstanding. He realizes that no one who ever cared about him even knows what continent he is on. In this hell of a prison, he is beaten and bruised and receives a rifle jabbed at shoulder length into his spine. Then, just when he believes he is at death's door, he is suddenly assisted in cleaning up and finds himself a free man once more. But, for how long, he is not sure. He realizes though, that in spite of everything that has transpired, he has met some kind people.

At last, he turns back for home and finds himself at Victoria Station in London, England, anticipating a previously arranged meeting with Marcie, a young woman he met earlier on. He loses grip with himself on a train, and the conductor brings a Doctor Cordova in to check him out. Doctor Cordova proves to be a kind and sympathetic person. This is where it is discovered that John may have a very serious infection in his mouth, but the doctor, though very concerned, has no antibiotics. He makes John promise to get the problem taken care of as soon as possible. John manages to connect back with Marcie and soon makes his way back home, but he is a changed man, much wiser and more appreciative of what he has.

This is only a bare sketch, if you will, a short synopsis of a great - and I emphasize great - book. A journey of a young man. A must read! It is educational, entertaining, gripping, riveting, sometimes frightening and definitely inspiring. No less than five stars. There should be ten!

If you like white water rafting, this is a wonderful book about the birth of white water fun.

Anyone remotely interested in white water rafting will thoroughly love this book. Buz Holstrom was a true Maverick in the sport. The authors bring him to life through their wonderful narrative and easy writing style. He is truly an individual that was remarkably talented in his boat building and navigational skills. This book left me wanting more of Buzz Holstrom and wishing he were still around to tell us more about his short remarkable life.

The legendary Buzz Holmstrom was a more complex figure than I knew. His journal entries express the feeling of all who really love rivers and the famous entry that includes "the doing of the thing" should be read on every river trip.
This is the second Brad Dimock book I've read (the other on Bert Loper) and I am impressed with not only his skill as a writer, but his careful research. His handling of the tragic end to Buzz Holmstrom's life was that of a journalist with a sense of humanity.
I've already loaned this book to friends.

Even today, with rescue not so far away, few of us would have the nerve to go down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon alone, so imagine the nerve it took when Buzz was totally alone, with no chance of help if he made a mistake. But the most amazing thing about Buzz was that in the midst of an adventure that would leave most people totally preoccupied with survival, Buzz had the soul power to look for and see the poetry in the river and the canyon. Merely knowing how to survive can be much easier than knowing how to live.

I remember years ago when I was a kid a story my father told me about an amazing river rafter and boat builder. My Dad grew up in Coquille and went to school with Buzz's younger brother. His story always ended with how Buzz had been on a rafting trip in eastern Oregon and went off and committed suicide. I could never understand how someone who had done the amazing things he did could end his life on that note. I thought about that story many times over the years and always wished I knew more. This book is incredibly well researched and documented. Even though many questions were answered, many more were raised. Such was the enigma that was Buzz Holmstrom.

I have owned this cookbook for over 10 years and it is my favorite and most used. Well written and easy to follow, the Texas Border Cookbook demonstrates many of the classic Texas recipes including salsas, guacamole, chili (5 different variations), enchiladas and chicken fried steak. If you enjoy southwestern food this cookbook should be in your collection.

There are a lot of cookbooks out there purporting to be "Tex-Mex". Most of them are charlatans. This is the Real Deal. When I was a kid, my mom even made "Texas Trash" for when company was coming over. She would always tell me, "Just don't tell them what it's called". Of course, the company loved it, as did I. She also made just about everything else in this book. This is what I grew up on. About the only thing she wouldn't make were Tamales, they are a "PITA" to make without help, a point mentioned in this book, she would buy them pre-made. If you like or want to learn Tex-Mex, "This is the one !". Authentic Tex-Mex !

This is an outstanding cookbood and easy to use. Every recipe I've made has turned out great and wow's my family and friends. I put it in my top three most frequently used cookbooks.

This is a great cookbook that is more New Mexican/ Border in flavor than Tex-Mex. The red enchiladas are so good. I usually make them twice a month for my family. I have made almost every recipe in this book and every one has been a winner.

One of my most used cookbooks - since I am in "the land of bland" I have to rely on this more than ever. Of special note is the grits recipe - a real winner for any brunch.

Jan Baross' first novel is as lush as her painting (front cover!) Her characters are equal parts flesh, blood, and magic. Her writing is clean and evocative, and the book is a pure joy.

This book is unbelievably rich, slightly bitter, deeply sweet, and utterly satisfying! Jan Baross is a masterful storyteller who engages all the senses. She's cooked up a complex and delicious tale of love. You'll devour it, and want more!

Jan Baross is a very gifted story-teller. She demands that you (the reader) let go. REally let-go....and what a romp! The characters come alive. She captures, like few gringa writers, the nuances of Latin AMerica, like she was born there!I swear I believed. I believed every word. And what a world she opens to us. Wild and abandoned. Risque and deeply sentimental. I loved it.

BY PAUL HAIST
Jewish Review

Portland writer Jan Baross' first novel, "Jose Builds a Woman," which was announced here at the time of its initial release earlier this year, is a timeless, lusty paean to love in many forms and an uncommonly satisfying tale.
Working in the genre of magical realism, Baross tells the story of Tortugina, a young Mexican peasant, from the time of her adolescence to the somewhat premature end of her life on earth as the mother of Jose whose childhood and young adulthood has been plagued by Tortugina's shortcomings, failures and misfortune.
Such a synopsis hardly does justice to this wild, funny, wonderful and sometimes Felliniesque tale of love--a parent's love, children's love and the eternal love that unites lovers everywhere.
Each page is alive with compelling imagery that verges on the poetic, at once as rich and uncomplicated as a simple tapioca pudding, never contrived and always surprising, often even astonishing.
Baross's tightly structured plot moves rapidly and, like a well-crafted screenplay, turns on credible and genuinely surprising reversals at just the right moment each time.
Expertise and sophistication at this level in storytelling might be expected of a novelist with more titles under his or her belt. In a first novel, such deftness is remarkable. It keeps the story exciting and makes one hunger for the next novel from Baross, which, by the way, she says is in the works.
The story begins and ends in a tiny fishing village where the only creatures that are harvested from the sea are the octopus that thrive there.
The girl Torgtugina is in love with Gabito, a handsome young octopus diver. The love is mutual, but tragically fated--a love that never will be consummated in this world, or not entirely in this world.
Through the liberties afforded by magical realism, Tortugina becomes the wife of two men, one living, one a ghost. One husband evolves as a nemesis to Tortugina, but not an evil man, more the victim of a curse whose occasionally aberrant cruelty derives from circumstances not entirely in his control. The other husband hovers over Tortugina as a guardian angel of sorts, but with shortcomings of his own--occasional clumsiness, ineptness or want of courage.
All the trials and the tender disappointments and postponed fulfillment that unfold for Tortugina up to and including the story's heart-wrenching and sob-inducing conclusion can be viewed as an allegory about the fullness and universality of love.
Magical realist stories frequently paint with broad brushes in the same way that opera does. But the seeming simplicity implicit in the technique notwithstanding, we still weep for Madama Butterfly and Senora Tortugina--or what they stand for--because those bold strokes of story-telling go directly to our heart and address the central issues of the life of each of us.
Baross has crafted a story that synthesizes the different types of love we know, a parent for a child, a child for a parent, and that which unites lovers. She even acknowledges the love we have for our neighbors.
It is no stretch to find in Baross' novel the idea that the love that connects one man and one woman is shared in equal measure among all the fruit of that union, down through all time and across all generations.
One eternal love affair engenders circles of love, each of which engenders new eternal love affairs encompassing the man and the woman, the children, the grandparents into antiquity and all who are yet to come--countless intersecting circles of love.
The topic of Barros' novel is the immutable centrality of human love from our very beginning.
A sub-topic, which the author seems to relish in print, is the carnal-spiritual connection--what the metaphysicist John Donne described when he wrote,
On man, heaven's influence works not so,
But that it first imprints the air,
So soul into the soul may flow,
Though it to body first repair.
It is each person's intuitive understanding of the centrality of love and the transcendent nature of the couplings we make in love--all the shining beauty and dark sadness that seem irrevocably intertwined in love--on which Baross has opened a magical window through which we see the truth more poignantly, if only briefly, like a rare momentary glimpse of the face of God.
And that is why her story is good, why it makes us weep.

Read in one sitting- absolutely rich and funny and heart breaking and vivid -- touches on all the tastes... just rich storytelling. The author isn't lazy - every turn of phrase is delectable. Has a personality of it's own. You can't help but be drawn into the world the author's created - life feels boring once you are finished.

I needed this for Christmas around the world at my school. The book is excellent and the children really enjoyed the story.

Another great addition to my collection. Tomie's illustrations complete this wonderful book.

Such an endearing story! This book contains beautiful illustrations. It is a Christmastime favorite.

If you are looking for the true story of the legend of the poinsettia, this is not it!!! The only thing that is the same about the legend from Mexico and this story is the fact that the poinsettias were made red on christmas eve because a little girl brought baby jesus a weed for his birthday because she was so poor. the names, plot, and special saying that the little girl's brother said in the legend is not in this book, which takes away the impact of the story. the drawings although are beautiful and the story is nice if you don't know the real legend.

I love legends. I always have. I am particularly fond of legends that attempt to explain things such as why the robin has a red breast, or why it snows on Christmas, or why the donkey says "hee haw," and other things like that. That is one of the reasons I was drawn to this little book by Tomie dePaola, The Legend of the Poinsettia.

Lucinda is a young girl who lives with her parents and younger siblings in Mexico. The colorful illustrations have that southeastern feel to it. Lucinda's community is preparing for Christmas by preparing gifts for the Christ child on Christmas Eve. I loved that the focus of gift giving was for Christ as opposed to the hustle and bustle and commercialism that is so common in American households. The gifts were labors of love too and involved special crafts, skills or homegrown gifts. Lucind and her mama have been asked to weave the special blanket for Baby Jesus as the one they have used for years is very old and worn.

When Lucinda's mama becomes ill, Lucinda is unable to finish the blanket by herself and the more she tries, the more tangled the yarn in the loom becomes. Lucinda is disheartened and worried about her mother, as well as saddened that her family has no gift to give the Christ child. Suddenly an old woman appears and suggests Lucinda pick some simple native weeds and bring them to Christ. In humility, Lucinda does that, and as you can guess, these become the beautiful poinsettia plants, the flor de la Nochelbuena, that we associate with Christmas today!

The reference and picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe was a nice touch for Catholic children who are familiar with story, and it was nice to see the shrine to our lady as part of Lucinda's everyday life. My children identified with Lucinda's fears for her mother, and also her fear of being different from the rest of the community. They also felt it was very brave of her to come forward with such a simple gift in the face of much splendor. After reading the story, my kids also became more aware of the poinsettias at church and other places and we even bought our own!

Overall I think this is a very nice book to read during the Advent season in preparation for Christmas, and a nice way for the family to focus on what is most important during this beautiful holiday.

This story was very moving. I applaud Don and the others for their work saving these amazing horses! It was a little slow reading but well worth it to learn first hand how these horses were saved by some extremely courageous people. It moved me to tears at times. I have since been looking for all the information I can find about Badger and Midnight. Not an easy task!
Thanks, Don for sharing your story with us!

As history shows again and again,these are "EVERYBODY'S HORSES"
I spent of lot of years north and south of White Sands,but wasn't in
the area when this situation occured unfortunately.As a horse lover,
owner ,practicing learning trainer this book could not be put down once
started . It has it's emotional tugs and real problems and is obviously
written from the heart . One of the best real world situations you rarely see or hear about in these too busy days. Even if you're not a 24hr
horse person this book is a must read piece of western history.
God Bless Dr.Don Hoglund and the many others involved who know what
a horse's Spirit is all about.
Sincerely R W

This book is one you won't be able to put down. Not only is the rescue riveting, but the description of the cultural circles of these horses is so well documented. Very well written and one that should be on every horseperson's booklist.

Maybe it was my expectations but this is a pretty slow reading book....

Any number of adjectives come to mind when I begin to contemplate the rescue of these magnificent creatures. Heroic, compassionate, courageous and dedicated only begin to describe the efforts of the team assembled by Don Hoglund and others. "Nobody's Horses" tells the amazing and heartwarming story of the rescue of some 2000 wild horses from the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico in 1995. It was a task wrought with danger from the get-go. And the fact of the matter is that the effort was none too popular with the animal rights crowd in this country either. But Don Hoglund knew better. He and his associates understood that these animals simply had to be relocated or they would not make it. The severe drought and lack of food at White Sands had made their long-term survival extremely problematic. "Nobody's Horses" is a fascinating piece of American history. The tale told by Don Hogland, DVM is simply riveting!
On a scorching July day in 1994, White Sands wildlife biologist Patrick Morrow made a gruesome discovery. Scores of wild horses were dead or dying near a watering hole on the range. When the dust had settled, a total of 122 horses had died. This was really the last straw. Those in positions of responsibility who really cared about these animals were convinced that most of them would perish if left to fend for themselves in such inhospitable conditions. An incredibly painful decision was made to move these horses off the land that they had occupied for centuries. The work would be difficult and extremely dangerous. It would require a team of intensely tough and dedicated individuals. That team would be led by Don Hoglund. Don was a respected veterinarian and a nationally recognized authority on the plight of wild horses. It is clear that he was the right man for this job.
"Nobody's Horses" recalls in exquisite detail the rescue of nearly 2000 wild horses from the deserts of New Mexico. In the course of this beautifully written book you will learn all about where these animals originally came from and how they had lived life on the range. You will meet several members of the team assembled by Don Hoglund including Les Gililland whose ancesters had owned several ranches in the area now occupied by the White Sands Missile Range. All of these folks were kicked off their land back in 1942 and given pennies on the dollar by the U.S. government for their land. These folks were told this was to be a temporary arrangement to help support the war effort. But these people never got to return to their homes nor did they get their livestock back and Les was still bitter. Some of the horses that were to moved were direct descendants of the animals his grandfather and great grandfather had owned. As someone who hails from the Northeast these issues were largely new to me and I found this entire story to be a real eye opener. In "Nobody's Horses" you will get a glimpse at the planning for this monumental effort and experience the trials and tribulations of the actual move. You will also discover just what happened to these horses once they were rescued. For the most part it was a very happy ending. As I mentioned earlier, "Nobody's Horses" is an extremely well written book that focuses on issues that I suspect most Americans know little or nothing about. A great read and a great way to expand your horizons! Highly recommended!

...que cuando antes de amarte me olvidé de tus besos mi corazón quedó recordando tu boca".
Uno de los sonetos de amor mas lindos y mas profundos que se han escrito! Neruda sabe como tratar su tema sin dejarse llevar por la melodia de sus palabras, escribe del amor como la siente y como la piense sin decir mas ni menos. Sus palabras se sienten, los disfrutas, son una bella cancion que suena real pero no estas seguro si es tu realidad, la que siempre sabias de ser asi o un suenio...

Neruda sigue siendo uno de los grandes. Y este libro, uno de los clásicos indiscutibles.

The "Veinte poemas de amor y una canción desesperada" is the best-selling book of poetry ever in the Spanish language and established Neruda as one of the great talents of the 20th century. Each of the 21 poems is touching, full of illusion and warmth, with an amazing use of imagery. The last two express loss and heartbreak in a breathtaking way. Poem #20 is perhaps the most famous: "Tonight I can write the saddest verse."

The "100 Sonetos," written many years later, contain some gems, though I much prefer the first book. Don't make the mistake of thinking that these were all written for the same woman -- they weren't! Neruda seduced many of his muses with his poetry.

Los "Veinte poemas de amor y una canción desesperada" es el libro de poesía más popular en la historia del idioma español, y estableció a Neruda como uno de los talentos más grandes del siglo XX. Cada uno de los poemas es conmovedor, lleno de ilusión y calidez, con un uso asombrante de imágenes. Los dos últimos expresan el dolor de la pérdida en una forma espectacular. El poema #20 es probablemente el más famoso: "Puedo escribir los versos más tristes esta noche."

El libro de los "Cien sonetos," escritos años después, contiene algunos poemas excelentes, pero carece de la misma vitalidad que el primero. No vayas a pensar que Neruda compuso todos estos poemas para la misma mujer! Sedujo a muchas de sus musas con su poesía.

Con versos fáciles de recordar, Neruda escribe en su juventud, este fundamental libro de poesía que cambiaría los ritmos y la forma de enamorar a generaciones de jóvenes, que aún copian sus versos para expresar sus sentimientos. Es una lectura indispensable que recomiendo a los que deseen acercarse a la mejor poesía de amor en español.

This is one of the first books of poetry that Neruda published back before the middle of the 20th century. It is an excellent and very recognized book - of poetry. I think the most important thing of Neruda is that he celebrated the goodness of poetry and good art. In that it is a way of enjoying life, and not gettting caught in the vanity or less popular ways of living or acting towards others (selfishness, greed etc).

This book is that. It is full of beauty. His poetry is one of the most recognized unversally, selling many copies (over amillion in spanish, and that was by 1956.

The most gratifying thing of this book and Neruda in general is the happiness, sadness - different emotions - that it depicts. And most importantly a work of quality.

What Night Forgets By Don Yorty Herodias

American writer-artist-poet, world traveler, and Manhattan community activist Don Yorty's first novel, the politically explosive, erotically charged What Night Forgets (Herodias)-set in Mexico against a compelling backdrop of international governmental intrigue, zanily complicated exotic travelers, stunning regional flamboyance, and apocalyptic redemption-is a literary masterpiece. There's a picture-postcard perfection that lies on the surface which he peels away to reveal what simmering violence lurks beneath to erupt into sudden, stark chaos; and then the luminous possibility of renewal. Imagine Night of the Iguana mated with Under the Volcano, and a brief side-trip to "Bring me the Head of Alfredo Garcia" country. Lavishly descriptive, Yorty gives us the unseen hand of the CIA wreaking its global destabilization; shimmering with lust, madness, bad politics, destructive marriages, an ambiance of dreamily realized eros, the timeless wonder of grasshoppers with lime, and the sheer redemption of harvesting alfalfa with a machete.

-Maralyn Lois Polak

What Night Forgets

By Don Yorty

Herodias

American writer-artist-poet, world traveler, and Manhattan community activist Don Yorty's first novel, the politically explosive, erotically charged What Night Forgets (Herodias)-set in Mexico against a compelling backdrop of international governmental intrigue, zanily complicated exotic travelers, stunning regional flamboyance, and apocalyptic redemption-is a literary masterpiece. There's a picture-postcard perfection that lies on the surface which he peels away to reveal what simmering violence lurks beneath to erupt into sudden, stark chaos; and then the luminous possibility of renewal. Imagine Night of the Iguana mated with Under the Volcano, and a brief side-trip to "Bring me the Head of Alfredo Garcia" country. Lavishly descriptive, Yorty gives us the unseen hand of the CIA wreaking its global destabilization; shimmering with lust, madness, bad politics, destructive marriages, an ambiance of dreamily realized eros, the timeless wonder of grasshoppers with lime, and the sheer redemption of harvesting alfalfa with a machete.

-Maralyn Lois Polak

I have just finished reading Yorty's first novel for the third time. I can't stop comparing him to my other favorite novelists: Conroy, Kingsolver, Uris and Steinbeck. He paints beautiful images with poetic prose that transport me to locations I've never been. Don Yorty's new book is on my list of the 10 best I've read in the last decade (and I read a lot!) I anxiously await his next novel. Buy this book!

Profound story woven together like a fine linen cloth. A page turner. If you never traveled, you will after reading this book. Vivid reading. Reads like Steinbeck. This Don Yorty novel needs planning. Block out the time and find yourself a quiet corner with a DO NOT DISTURB sign. Be prepared to be swept away. Be prepared for the Canadian you will love to hate.

Whereas some poets write prosaic poetry (in style and content),Don Yorty writes poetic prose. That doesn't make his prose less real, only more vivid. He is a talent a teacher gets once a career if she's lucky.

There is nothing I can say that would do any justice as to how great this book is. It was everything you could possibly hope for in an ethnographic text. You learn a lot about a culture very different from ours and it is truly just fascinating!

What do people make of places? Basso's opening sentence is a good example of what the Apache call `letting one's mind have room'. As we read through the chapters of the book Basso continues to add layers to the meaning of this opening question. It allows us to reflect on various uses of the word `make'. We make sense of places by interpreting them. We make places intelligible by foregrounding them. We make use of places; as sign posts or land-marks through the use of descriptive naming. We make places or constitute them as sites or repositories of learning; we invest them as placeholders for morality tales or homilies. We make places vital; we invest them with agency, we enchant them, animate them, in the spirit of golems; we take a piece of earth and through magic or metaphysics we bring it alive, giving it a mission and a life of its own.

Wisdom sits in places. The Apache are a good example of virtue ethics. This is a theory of ethics, usually based on Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, which argues against an ethical universalism and in favor of a particularism. It foregoes the quest for nomothetic foundations and looks instead to the development of certain skills or character traits. Aristotle created a catalogue of areas of behavior or traits with a continuum of possible dispositions. The virtuous behavior was the means between the two extremes of each continuum. Thus the virtue of bravery was somewhere in the range between cowardice and foolhardiness or irrational voluntarism in the face of impossible odds or a meaningless risk.
Aristotle's concept of phronesis finds an interesting parallel in the Apache moral imagination. Phronesis is a meta-virtue; it is the ability to choose the right action for each particular event; the ability to find the virtuous means between vicious poles. It is the essential skill for particularism which is the theory that the right action, the correct moral choice is particular to each unique event. It is opposed to the universalist proposition that there are sets of moral propositions or codes that we can apply in a covering law model. Universalism holds that when two of our moral codes clash we resolve the dilemma by applying a meta-rule, most commonly a deontological (Kantian) or utilitarian proposition.
The Apache's sense of wisdom is a good example of a pragmatic ethics informed by a set of virtues that are learned and continually developed throughout their life's journey. In the first chapter we note how each speaker brings the homily (the moral lesson associated with a place name) forward, making it their own, fleshing it out. One imagines that each speaker and hearer of place names is expected to silently immerse themselves in each homily; making it real by seeing it happen. The act of giving vision to the oral narrative is a process of developing layers upon layers of particular exemplars of the lesson. It is thus internalized and carried forward for the next use. As one gains wisdom one becomes more proficient at seeing when and where to apply these lessons.
This is similar to the thought of the American pragmatist and logician, C. S. Peirce, who proposed a fallibilism about knowledge, truth, and scientific results. He felt that we were always discovering more and that a full statement of any putative universal law was always deferred. Peirce's original pragmatism differed from what James and Dewey later made of it. For Peirce we expanded our sense of a truth through a process of discovering layers upon layers of particular applications and gradually gaining more of an understanding of the wider truth. But his sense of fallibilism posited rich moral concepts such as justice or duty as essentially contested concepts.

We have maps in our heads. There are other interesting parallels with the ancient Greeks besides virtue ethics. There is a significant body of study regarding Plato's thought on the spoken and written word. Plato argued that reality resides in absolute and eternal forms. Thus the impressions available to our senses are imitations that is but a shadow of these eternal truths; they confuse us and should not be trusted. Worse still are the imitations of imitations; thus his polemics against poetry, art, and the written word. It would be interesting to combine this with the study of texts in the 20th century to look at the Apache's preference for maps in the head. Barthes, Derrida and others all expanded our notion of what can serve as texts and it might be interesting to look at Apache use of places through some of those lenses.
In addition there are interesting parallels with the sophists. Although Plato and Socrates succeeded in creating our contemporary disdain for sophism, recent work in the study of Isocrates and others brings a new appreciation of certain tenets of sophism. The sophists exhibited some similarities to the Apache notions of epistemology. They both saw the elders and ancestors as the source of wisdom and warrants for knowledge to be used for current problems. They both argued that the knowledge of the past resided less in universal laws than in practices of the ancestors; actual responses to past dilemmas that are best accessed through interpretation rather than a rote use of the covering law model or a slavish rehearsal of rigid and dogmatic rituals.
They both thought that knowledge (as justified true belief) was discovered and ultimately ratified and warranted by the voice of the majority; the interpretation that found the most general favor. The sophists proposed that vigorous debate in an open forum of citizens is the most epistemologically sound form of inquiry. Their best speakers would take both sides on various propositions of what the ancestors would have done in the current crisis. The goal was to make the best possible argument for all options and let the citizenry decide.
Both the ancient Greeks and the Apache continued to observe religious rituals but it would also be interesting to compare characteristics of their religious cosmology, the role of the gods, and their associations with natural entities and nature in general.

This book was mediocre at best. Although Keith Basso did provide some insight into why the Apache people cherish their land, I felt that Basso kept on saying the exact same thing in every sentence. I had the point of the entire book by the time I was ten pages into it, and it kept on going, therefore making me lose my concentration on what I was reading.

Anthropologists, language students, and Native American culture afficionados will find this book, and any by Keith Basso, written links into a cultural past which struggles to exist today. As the Western Apache tribes become more modern, the information found in this and other Keith Basso writings, become necessities in the preservation of traditional Apache culture; with the exception of the knowledge of a few hundred very traditional Apaches still living in Arizona.

What do people make of places? This is the central question examined by Keith Basso in his ethno-linguistic study of the relationship between language and landscape among the Apaches of Cibecue, on the Fort Apache Reservation in central Arizona. Basso, a professor of Anthropology at the University of New Mexico, has spent over 30 years conducting field work among the Western Apaches. His publications concerning this group include articles on language, patterns of silence in social interaction, witchcraft beliefs, and ceremonial symbolism, among others. The idea for Wisdom Sits in Places stemmed from a study conducted between 1979 and 1984, in which Basso, with the help of a grant from the National Science Foundation and the guidance of the Apaches, conducted a study of Apache places and place-names; how the Apache refer to their land, the stories behind the place-names, and how these place-names are used in daily conversation by Apache men and women. The result is a stunningly informative account of the use of landscape and language in the social interactions of the Western Apaches.
Basso divides his book into four sections: Quoting the Ancestors, Stalking with Stories, Speaking with Names, and Wisdom Sits in Places. Each chapter's focus is to examine how landscape and language serve distinct purposes in Western Apache society. Basso incorporates the oral history of, and discussions with, local Apaches, as well as his formal training as an ethnographer-linguist, to explain the underlying themes of this book.
First, Basso introduces the reader to the idea of place-names and in the Western Apache construction of history. As conceived by the Apaches, the past is a "well-worn `path' or `trail' which was traveled first by the people's founding ancestors and which subsequent generations of Apaches have traveled ever since" (31). The ancestors gave names to places, based on events that occurred there. Regardless of the physical changes in the landscape that occurred over time, the story of what took place, as well as the place-name, was passed down through generations and serves as a connection between the people and their ancestors.
Second, Basso examines how the language and the land are "manipulated by Apaches to promote compliance with standards for acceptable social behavior and the moral values which support them" (41). The historical tales of place-names are without exception morality tales, intended to influence patterns of social action. Their purpose is to serve as warnings, criticisms, and enlightenment for those who are behaving improperly; not in accordance with the Apache way of life. The telling of a historical tale is "intended as a critical and remedial response" to an individual's having committed one or more social offenses. Apaches contend that if the message is taken to heart, a lasting bond will have been created between that individual and the site at which the events in the tale took place. In short, the land, accompanied with its historical tale, "makes the people live right" (61).
Third, through the act of "speaking with names", place-names can be condensed "into compact form their essential moral truths" (101). "Speaking with names" is considered appropriate only under certain circumstances, generally to enable those who engage in it "to acknowledge a regrettable circumstance without explicitly judging it, to exhibit solicitude without openly proclaiming it, and to offer advice without appearing to do so" (91). Evoking images of a particular place and narrative thus replaces a more direct form of advice or criticism, with "a minimum of linguistic means" (103).
Finally, with the guidance of his Apache friend, Dudley Patterson, Basso examines the path of wisdom in Western Apache society. Patterson explains there are two mental conditions, "steadiness of mind", and "resilience of mind", which lead to a third and most desirable condition, smoothness of mind. These three conditions are not innate; therefore, one must work on one's mind in order to gain wisdom. To work on one's mind, "one must observe different places, learn their Apache place-names, and reflect on traditional narratives that underscore the virtues of wisdom" (134). A resilient mind, according to Patterson, does not "give in to panic or fall prey to spasms of anxiety or succumb to spells of crippling worry" (132). A steady mind is "unhampered by feelings of arrogance or pride, anger or vindictiveness, jealously or lust" (133). Steadiness and resilience give way to a sense of "cleared space" or "area free of obstruction", conditions necessary for smoothness of mind. Only those who continue on the trail of wisdom their whole lives come closest to having a smooth mind, and are "able to foresee disaster, fend off misfortune, and avoid explosive conflicts with other persons" (131). Thus, wisdom is intertwined with the idea of survival through the consistent and thoughtful evocation of landscape and language.
Keith Basso and the Western Apaches of Cibecue have provided readers with an insightful and provocative account of the connection between language, land, and a people's cultural history. Wisdom Sits in Places opens the door for future research on place-names by shedding light on a previously overshadowed topic in anthropological studies. Basso's dissection of certain stories and social interactions can be overwhelming and a bit dry, but his purpose is made clear when his examinations are added together with the Apache narratives. What results is a clear picture of what language and landscape mean to the Western Apaches, the functional versatility of place-names, and the importance of being aware of one's sense of place.